There’s a new angel in heaven this evening, one with a wit that
twinkles as bright as her eyes. For poignancy, God took her on the eve
of a new school year. Jane Schaffer of San Diego, California. She
became my teacher . . . then my mentor . . . and then my friend.
Jane lived in California but came to Dallas to train English
teachers. I remember the first time I met Jane: it was 1991, and I was
still a newcomer to the teaching profession. She was at the Galleria
Westin Hotel for a conference which I attended. I never looked back.
Integral to my development as a teacher, Jane instilled in me a sense of
duty to students and wonder toward learning. I followed her around the
southwest educational circuit for many years, like a puppy dog with its
tongue wagging and panting for more. I hung on her every word. None
of us in her workshops ever tired of her instruction. Are you kidding?
After teaching all week and before grading sets of essays due Monday
morning, just to see Jane, English teachers would pay our own way to
attend a Saturday and Sunday with her. We listened intently, saddened
and surprised when the workshop ended. Her love of reading and insight
into human nature revealed a soulful sage. Her writing methodology was
as malleable as the students it served, if taught as she intended. She
opened doors to the creative process in gifted adolescent students and
saved many a struggling writer . . . and teacher.
Jane made us laugh and made us cry, and sometimes simultaneously.
Jane would send us off from her workshops feeling rejuvenated and
redirected to face another day in the classroom with a new purpose. No
matter how large an audience, she would take time for all of us, asking
about our classes with that look of empathy and encouragement. She
believed in us; she believed in me, and, therefore, I did, too.
If you’re an English teacher, you’ve probably heard of Jane. If you
are fortunate, you met her. And if God smiled down upon you, you were
her friend and she, your inspiration.
Deborah
